Microsoft signs technology pact with Linspire

“Announcing the latest in a series of pacts with Linux sellers, Microsoft said late Wednesday that it has inked a deal with Linspire, a company it once sued for trademark infringement.

The two companies made peace in 2004, with Linspire agreeing to shed its Lindows name and Microsoft paying the company $20 million. Linspire also got the right to use certain Windows Media codecs and settled Microsoft’s trademark infringement claims.

Under the latest deal, the two will be working more closely in a variety of areas, including instant messaging and Web search. In addition, purchasers of Linspire’s paid Linux version will get intellectual property protection against any legal action by Microsoft for using the Linux desktop software. Linspire doesn’t plan to include either the Microsoft technology or the patent protection in its no-charge Freespire product.

“We’re going to include it with Linspire, and we are not going to raise the retail price,” Linspire CEO Kevin Carmony said Wednesday.

It’s just the latest in a series of Linux-related deals. Things started last November when Microsoft and Novell struck a controversial arrangement that provided, among other things, patent protections for users of Novell’s Suse Linux. Microsoft has since struck a deal with Xandros as well.

Microsoft also has noted that Linux protections have been part of its recent cross-licensing pacts, including patent-swap deals with LG, Samsung and Fuji Xerox.

“What this deal is evidence of is this continued effort by a variety of Linux providers and Microsoft to build a bridge between our different platforms,” said David Kaefer, Microsoft general manager of intellectual property licensing.

The companies did not go into the financial terms of the deal, but Kaefer said, “Clearly both of us expect to make money on the arrangement.”
As part of the deal, Linspire will make Microsoft’s Live Search the default search engine in Linspire and will get an extension to its license of the Windows Media technology, including access to Windows Media 10 codecs.

Microsoft also will license some fonts and voice over IP technology for use in instant messaging, while Linspire will join an effort to create translators between Office 2007’s XML file formats and the OpenDocument format. “

http://news.zdnet.com/2100-3513_22-6190846.html?tag=nl.e550

In Linux is difficult and almost an undaunting ta…

In Linux is difficult and almost an undaunting task the configuration of a wireless network. But the good news is that a direct connection to a DSL AT & T modem works like a champ using a distro such as Ubuntu or Red Hat. Other than that: Linux is faster than Windows and more flexible and intuitive. If you are too attached still to windows and wants something that looks similar to Linux try Lindows now called Linspire, but bear in mind that this bistro is not free.

The Linux support forums are outstanding and best of all free of charge And by the way you don’t spend too much time in linux seeking for viruses and spyware.

[b]Multitasking makes it possible for a single user to run multiple applications at the same time.[/b]

Linux reminds me a lot of the old 0S/2 and Amiga Preemptive multitasking/time-sharing capabilities. With Windows in the other hand for example and with the slow loading of an application such as MS word it seems like it takes “forever” to show up. In Unix/ Linux this is the opposite, with hardly any waiting period.

To explain it better: Linux/Unix operating system is designed as preemptive multitasking giving better results as far as system responsiveness and scalability. Although in many of the official “status quo” definitions Windows falls into this also preemptive multitasking category and MS techies would affirm cathegorally that I’m wrong by me saying otherwise or that Windows’ approach is based more on the concept of cooperative multitasking (a process which explicitly yield to other processes) instead. But based in the actual Windows XP poor performance and -in this context- I still think Windows behaves more like a cooperative multitasking system and it is not in essence a true multitasking operating system, because Windows is really multi-threading and not multitasking. And my conclusion is based on what I have seen and not by what Microsoft claims to be. I do not think Windows is truly multi-tasking, but appears to be imitating multitasking based on its kernel, just like appears to imitate Apple superior operating system since MS released Windows 95 is been trying constantly to be number one. MS is disappointing users and this has been proven recently with the hurdles and flaws exhibited by its latest incarnation of Windows Vista.

Please, don’t believe what I say and just give Apple a chance and for now you could even try Linux for free. As a matter of fact Mac OS architecture is derived from Unix.

If you don’t have enough money for a Laptop give consideration to a Desktop. I think Mac-Mini is a good option for beginners. http://www.apple.com/macmini/